Fast And Free

The night was a time of freedom for Taveril’domaine, when workers and students were free to pursue their dreams without the shackles of the day and the tether of responsibility. They frolicked about the entertainment district, chatting amongst friends about the latest music and movies, drank in the bars and glittering clubs whose lights bled from open doors onto the streets. The Master of Freedom wished to have that liberty tonight, but his mind was consumed with a lot of thought. 

Ceredex, the Master Of Contract was becoming more hostile by the day and the worst of that was that he was their mentor. They had both been raised in families that strongly upheld dekn superiority over all over. They’d both been raised with the idea that arkn were nothing but hostile, inferior forces bent on tearing the universe apart with their ignorance. But over time, Baphomet had begun to think differently. He’d met arkn and half-arkn off the battlefield and the more he saw, the more he questioned it all. He’d voiced all his thoughts to Ceredex and she became livid instantly, calling it betrayal against his people and their entire way of life. She’d told him to go live with the animals if that was how he felt, but if he truly was a Master he would put aside this nonsense and continue training their people for war. 

She was getting to be dangerous, talking about genocide and even a plan to take the throne and save their people from their own decadence and corruption. He’d be simply slandered by Ceredex if he attempted to broach this to the council, but he was still concerned. He knew where his student's rage came from, seeing your parents killed in war was never something anyone should experience. But this went beyond the scope of his private corps. Ceredex was becoming violent and unpredictable, shouting at their soldiers and increasing training, they’d begun to reach out and were even trying to recruit the half-born. Something he’d forbid not by prejudice but because half-born weren’t to be put against full-blooded arkn. They couldn’t live on their battlefields. 

Baphomet shook his head, his chestnut-colored mane of braided and decorated hair shook around him. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t even believe in his own causes anymore. This war could end and no more lives would need to be lost. He’d seen what loss did to people, he’d been the one to give news to families and it never ended in anything but wails and crying. He was so distracted he didn’t see the quickly approaching figure until it bumped into him. There was a cry as someone collided with his bare chest and fell to the ground. Baphomet looked and saw a woman in a vivid violet gown with a tightly cinched bodice, golden vines wrapped around her waist and reaching up to form a chokehold around her neck. Baphomet was absolutely stunned by her. She was beyond beautiful and carried a radiance about her, though dim as it was right now it still remained flickering in her eyes, struggling to remain. ‘Aw fuck, I know what this is.’ Baphomet sighed. “Look, whatever you’re going to try and tell me or wherever you’re trying to get me to go it’s not going to work. I’m not interested.” He waved his hands in disinterest. “Please…” The woman cried. “You have to help me! I need to get out of here!” She pleaded, tears running down her perfect, porcelain face, trailing black makeup. 

‘Oh…. why does this have to be me… Of all the people in this city… It’s because I’m the Master of Freedom- the one whos supposed to help all that I see in need. Someone whos supposed to fight against things like this with everything in me. I shouldn’t though, this is not my fight, this is not my woman and the one who she belongs to doesn’t like it when someone snipes their women…’ Before he could continue his mental battle his conscience decided to launch a surprise attack and he had the woman by the arm and moving as fast as he could without drawing too much attention- though she was likely drawing all the attention on her own with her sobbing and that garish dress. 

‘I guess we’re doing this then. We’re actually helping a random woman we don’t even know get out. This isn’t going to end well, you know that right?’ He grumbled at himself. “How long have you been awake?” he asked, wanting to know exactly how much time he had before she went feral. He had to find a way to lock her down and take care of her so she could work through this. He could then throw her on a UMEEC ship and have her off to whatever corner of the universe she wanted to be at. She could probably hide on Ersis if she got remote enough…

“I don’t know…” She sniffed. “I’ve been thinking of running but I just couldn’t get myself to do it, I finally managed to get myself to while out getting my hair done…” “At least a day, at most three. Wide scope but I can work with it, fuck…” He huffed. ‘There has to be someone who can get her off-realm before I get too tied up in this situation.’ He knew he wasn’t going to get her all the way from here back to his apartment without too many people seeing him, this was already complicated enough and he had to at this point. He pulled her into an alleyway and pulled a teleportation device from his pocket, loading it with one of his crystals and hitting the button on it, they vanished with a flash. 

Baphomet yawned as he plopped down on a large black leather sofa in his den, scuffed at the top from a few too many brushes with his two smaller horns that came to point at the sides of his head. Scratching his beard he let his head fall back and heard a pop as one of the black horns that arched over his head pierced the back of the sofa. He’d definitely have to replace this one soon enough as fast as it was going, but he had bigger problems right now. There was a woman sleeping in his bed that pretty soon was going to lose it and fight him to get out of here. He needed a damn plan, he knew there were probably people who got these guys out, Marchosias had plenty of enemies- himself for one. Someone had to be working to pull these people out of this shit and he really didn’t want to be one. 

Why did he do it then? He could have left her on that street and walked away, saving her wouldn’t fix what happened before. He’d closed his eyes when his phone suddenly started ringing. He didn’t need to see the caller to know who this was. “What is it, Cerrunox? I thought you were going to lose my number.” Baphomet's voice was laid heavily with displeasure. 

“I called because I’ve heard from the vine that one of our cherished sisters had a crisis of faith and was seen with you. I wanted to call you and see if you knew anything about that. She has some problems, the biggest that she’s an arkn but I’m sure you already knew that if you haven’t killed her already.” Baphomet's eyes widened, he didn’t know that. 

“First of all, I’m not killing people who aren’t trying to kill me first. I’m over the shit I grew up with. I wouldn’t give a shit if she was the arkn queen herself.” Baphomet growled into the device. “Second, I’ve been at home all evening. I don’t know about any woman.” 

“Pity.” Cerrunox’s voice suddenly shifted it was so subtle but Baphomet had been around the man so long he knew that sound. “Now that I think about you, I really should get some of that incense you used to burn, it was so calming and I think it would be the perfect compliment to me now. I think they have it in a shop around the Labor District… Ah, old Valorn handmade it with ingredients from Ersis. Well, enough of this chat!” His voice was suddenly back to where it was before, overly happy. “If you were to see this woman and you’ve finally decided to see the light then I’m sure you’ll do the right thing and return her to her people. We miss her so much and it breaks our hearts that she’s in so much pain.” The line cut and Baphomet set the phone down. 

He knew what was going on here, that incense was one he’d bought from a luxury import shop not too far from here, and he knew Cerrunox knew that since he was with him when he bought it. This was the second time he’d done everything to save someone from this curse, the first time he’d gotten a knife in the chest from his own lover and abandoned, bleeding on the floor. Cerrunox could very well be laying a trap for him, he’d bring her to the place he’d mentioned and it would be an ambush. But Cerrunox was a shit liar and he’d have heard it if he was trying to lie to him. “I guess this time I’ll have to actually do it…” Baphomet stood up and stretched, the fire blazing in the hearth making his dark, bronzed skin almost blend with the gold armlets and piercings on his chest. A singular pale scar reminded him every day of the time he’d failed the person he’d loved and given up on himself in the process.